Madison Marks, 2013 Boren Scholar in Jordan
Fresh off a one-year stint in Jordan on a prestigious David L. Boren Scholarship, Madison Marks doesn’t slow down. With a keen interest in international refugee studies, Madison has pursued every opportunity to advance her Arabic language skills, gain international field experience and prepare a solid resume, with her eye on becoming a future graduate student at Oxford University.
The Boren Awards for International Study, are highly competitive fellowships for study abroad. Funded by the National Security Education Program, the Boren Awards provide undergraduate and graduate fellowships of $20-$30K to fund opportunities to study the language and culture of countries normally underrepresented in U.S. study abroad programs. Applicants must convince the selection committee how their study abroad program, as well as their future academic and career goals, will contribute to U.S. national security. In my previous post “How to Win a Boren Fellowship”, I discuss the importance of crafting a compelling application. Madison provides her insider tips on crafting a national security-related project proposal in the context of economic sustainability. She also talks frankly about her experience applying for the prestigious Rhodes Scholarship for study at Oxford.
1. What inspired you to apply for the Boren Scholarship and what was your experience like?
I enrolled in Arabic at FSU, but there were few opportunities to practice the language outside of the classroom; therefore, I sought opportunities to gain an extended immersion experience abroad.
The Boren Scholarship is a National Security Education Program-funded grant that enables students to pursue immersion experiences with languages that are pertinent to U.S. national security interests, broadly defined. Undergraduate Boren Scholars can receive up to $20,000 for study abroad. Boren tends to select students who choose to spend 6-12 months in one country as opposed to one semester. The application process involves writing two essays. One of these essays describes how the language and country chosen is pertinent to the applicant’s goals and U.S. national security interests; the other is a more general overview of the preferred study abroad program.
Developing my proposal for the Boren scholarship was actually quite challenging because I was interested in studying Sudanese Arabic. Both Sudan and South Sudan are on the U.S. State Department Travel Warning list, therefore I had to be creative with my application. My interest in Sudan developed during my first two years at FSU where I wrote several term papers and did a Directed Individual Study related to the causes and consequences of displacement in the Nuba Mountains area of Sudan. Through my research, I learned that the largest Sudanese diaspora community is in Cairo. As a result, I crafted my Boren application in such a way that I emphasized the importance of studying in Cairo so that I could also interact with Sudanese refugees to learn the dialect. I emphasized the importance of having U.S. experts in Sudan in the future, as well as my desire to contribute towards security in the Sudan via economic sustainability projects, especially related to education.
During the period between submitting my application in January 2011 and receiving the Boren Scholarship in May 2011, Egypt experienced a lot of economic and political transitions following the fall of Mubarak. My study abroad program was canceled for the fall, so I switched to Jordan. I had won a grant from my university to study Arabic in Jordan the summer, so I was simply extending my stay from three months to a full year.
I studied Arabic intensively at Qasid Institute, progressing through level 6 of Modern Standard Arabic. I did not go with an organized study abroad group, so I did much of my planning for extracurricular activities, language partners, and travel by myself or with my group of friends. I volunteered with refugee aid and civil society organizations in order to learn more about different NGOs, and taught conversational English. All of these extracurricular activities and language partners enabled me to hone my Arabic conversational skills and gave me insight into my academic and professional interests. Working with and befriending refugees from across the Middle East and North Africa sparked an interest in pursuing further education in Refugee and Forced Migration studies.
Upon returning to the U.S. in summer 2012, I worked with refugees in Nashville, Tennessee in order to learn about the U.S. resettlement process and the challenges that refugees face in adjusting to American culture and systems. My experience in Nashville and the Middle East motivated me to apply for the Rhodes scholarship in order to obtain an MPhil in International Development. Oxford has the world’s leading Refugee Studies Centre, and I wanted to concentrate my master’s thesis on issues concerning forced migration. Because I had already applied for the Boren scholarship, I was prepared for the hard work that the Rhodes application would require. Drafting a personal statement was difficult (and took between 10 and 12 different drafts!) yet rewarding because I was finally able to put my story down on paper in a concise way and better articulate my personal and professional goals. Being selected as a finalist for the Rhodes in fall 2012 was an honor. It challenged me to learn how to articulate my goals in an interview setting and not just on paper. I have grown much as a result of these fellowships and would not have been able to have the opportunities I did without the funding abilities like Boren. The most rewarding part is the personal growth you gain from the application process, whether or not you are selected as a fellow or not.
2. What do you think made your application stand out?
My application to the Boren was unique because of my interest in national security-related issues in the Sudan. The country that was most closely related to Sudan in language and culture was Egypt; therefore, I drafted my application emphasizing the importance of studying in Cairo in order for me to enhance my Arabic skills and understanding of Sudanese culture and dynamics. As mentioned before, the largest number of Sudanese refugees are in Cairo. In addition to my Arabic studies, I planned to volunteer with NGOs that would enable me to use my Arabic skills while learning about the challenges that Sudanese refugees faced in Cairo. Ultimately, I believe my application stood out because it was atypical in the way that I defined the importance of national security in a country like Sudan that is often overlooked in discussions on the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. While I ended up studying in Jordan, I pursued my interests in education and social development through volunteerism there, and I visited Cairo on my route home.
I started drafting my essays two to three months before the application deadline in order to give myself time to work through several revisions. Giving myself plenty of time on the application helped me to dwell on areas in which I needed to improve, and what was not necessary to get my point across. If I could give advice to other applicants for the Boren Scholarship, it would be the following:
- Talk to your university fellowships advisor and your major professors early. The application deadline on your campus might be a few weeks before the national deadline. Beginning in October and November gives you plenty of time to do research on your proposed study abroad programs.
- Notify those who will be writing your letters of recommendation well in advance.
- Contact your proposed study abroad programs in advance in order to get the name of the admissions coordinator. If you are having trouble finding a study abroad program, see where other Boren scholars have studied in the past. The Boren website has a list of sites where you might be able to find a list of websites internationally.
- Staying with a host family or in a dorm will provide you unique insight into the culture, and will help you grow your language skills.
- While writing your essays, be sure to answer the prompt questions directly: (1) why the language you seek to study is important to national security; (2) the importance of the country you are studying in; (3) how you came to be interested in this language/country/topic and how you plan to use your acquired skills following the Boren scholarship; (4) where you plan to fulfill your year of service; and (5) how the study abroad programs of your choice will enable you to reach your goals.
- Do your research to create a realist budget. For instance, taxis in Jordan were $4.00 per day. This adds up over a year!
- Keep a timeline of the deadlines for the study abroad programs you have chosen. You will be notified in May whether or not you received the Boren, but you should have applied to the study abroad programs by this time…. Especially if you are starting in summer!
- Reach out to other Boren alumni for any questions. If you are selected as a Boren Scholar, you will have access to a Facebook group for Boren scholars. I utilized this in order to find a roommate in Jordan who is now one of my dearest friends!
3. How has the Boren Scholarship influenced your professional interests and career path?
The Boren Scholarship allowed me to gain advanced proficiency in Arabic, a skill that is fundamental for work in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. Living in Jordan for a year also enabled me to explore my interests in refugee assistance and civil society development by volunteering with international and local organizations. Additionally, I was introduced to a network of Boren scholars and other international students and professionals who share an interest in the Middle East.
Overall, my academic and work experiences and the relationships built throughout my time on the Boren Scholarship has encouraged me to pursue a career whereby I can work towards education and social development in the MENA region. The definition of national security includes economic sustainability. I hope to use my language skills in a position with the State Department where I can work towards development policies and strategies related to refugees and asylum seekers in the Middle East and North Africa
I will be working in Washington D.C. this summer as an intern with World Justice Project. I will be working with research, communications, and data collection related to the annual release of the Rule of Law Index. After this summer, I plan to stay in D.C. or move to the Middle East in order to gain experience in the field of international education and social development. My goal is to attend graduate school in the near future for an M.A. in International Development with a focus in Economics. I still hope to attend Oxford in order to interact with the world’s leading professionals in the field of Refugee and Forced Migration studies.
Madison Marks is from Jacksonville, Florida and is a recent graduate of Florida State University with a Bachelor of Arts in Middle East Studies. Madison is currently based in Washington D.C. where she is a Rule of Law Index intern with World Justice Project. Her areas of interest include international education and social development and forced migration issues with a focus in the Middle East and North Africa region.
Tracey Wellington, GEM Fellow and 2006 East Asia and Pacific Summer Institutes Fellow in Japan
Tracey Wellington is another example of a ProFellow. An accomplished graduate student in engineering, she now has several fellowships under her belt, including a National Science Foundation East Asia and Pacific Summer Institutes (EAPSI) grant that allowed her to conduct research in Japan in 2006. The EAPSI grants provide U.S. graduate students in science and engineering first-hand research experiences in Australia, China, Japan, South Korea, New Zealand, Singapore or Taiwan. These research experiences give students an introduction to the science, science policy, and scientific infrastructure of the respective location as well as an orientation to the society, culture and language. One of the primary goals of the EASPI is to help students initiate scientific relationships that will better enable future collaboration with foreign counterparts. We asked Tracey about her experience applying and the benefits to conducting research abroad.
1. Why did you decide to apply for the EAPSI summer fellowship to Japan?
I was a first year graduate student and have always looked for the opportunity to incorporate an international component in my studies. When I saw the email about the fellowship I thought it would be an exciting opportunity because I would be able to serve as my own Principal Investigator and also have the challenge of conducting research in a country and language that I wasn’t familiar with.
2. What do you think made your application stand out?
I must admit I was surprised and elated when I was accepted since I was a first year graduate student who had just completed my Bachelor of Science and I was not far along in my research program. I believe what helped my application stand out is the fact that I had conducted research as an undergrad in a number of different areas (astronomy, high energy physics and science education) and found an opportunity in Japan that would allow me to utilize equipment that weren’t accessible to me in the US. Through my advisor I was able to find a host at the Institute for Solid State Physics at the University of Tokyo and I was able to conduct a number of experiments that I was later able to present at national and international conferences.
3. What are the professional benefits of conducting research abroad?
There is important and exciting research going on everyday around the world and if we don’t step out of our immediate surroundings we will never know the full extent of the advancements that are happening in our field. I learn so much from my colleagues overseas; some make great discoveries using state of the art resources and some with very little. In the end they all contribute to the advancement of knowledge in our respective fields.
Tracey Wellington is currently a 2012 GEM Fellow sponsored by Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). She was awarded the Energy Science and Engineering Fellowship through the Bredesen Center for Interdisciplinary Research and Graduate Education (CIRE) to complete a PhD in Energy Science and Engineering beginning Fall 2012. CIRE is a joint center between the University of Tennessee, Knoxville and ORNL. Tracey has a BS in Mathematical Physics from Randolph College and an MS in Materials Science and Engineering from Texas A&M University where she was awarded a National Science Foundation Integrative Graduate Education and Research Traineeship (IGERT).
© Victoria Johnson 2012, all rights reserved.
Richelle Thomas, 2012 Fulbright Scholar and 2010 GEM Fellow
Richelle Thomas is another shining example of a ProFellow. Richelle is currently a Fulbright Scholar at the Edmund Cohen Vascular Research Laboratory at the University of the West Indies and is also a 5th year doctoral student and GEM Fellow studying chemical engineering at the University of Texas at Austin. The National Consortium for Graduate Degrees for Minorities in Engineering and Science, Inc. (GEM) sponsors the GEM Fellowship Program, which provides graduate and doctoral fellowships coupled with paid summer internships. The fellowship program includes an MS Engineering Fellowship, a Ph.D. Engineering Fellowship and a Ph.D. Science Fellowship. The goals of these programs are to increase the number of underrepresented minority students (African Americans, American Indians, and Hispanic Americans) pursing graduate and doctoral degrees in engineering and natural science and to promote the benefits of a graduate degre within industry.
1. Why did you decide to apply for the GEM Fellowship?
The GEM Consortium (the organization that operates the fellowship) was housed at University of Notre Dame, where I did my undergraduate degree. Therefore I became aware of the fellowship well before I was eligible to apply. I actually applied a few times before I was selected. I knew being a GEM fellow would introduce me to a network of science professionals from diverse backgrounds. I love meeting new people and learning about how I can improve myself and my skills. The GEM Fellowship specifically is for students interested in going into industry after graduate school. I had a number of internships during my undergraduate years but I was not sure what opportunities there were for me with a graduate degree. I thought the GEM Fellowship would help with that, and it did.
2. What do you think made your application stand out?
GEM is not a typical fellowship in that the focus is not solely on your academic research. Instead, the process is very similar to applying for a job or internship. That being said, my application was focused more on speaking to what would be pertinent to a hiring manager in terms of my interests, skill set and value added to a company. I think my application stood out because I discussed my research in the context of how it helped hone skills that may be applicable in an industrial research setting. I tried to make a direct link from my academic research and the variety of industries I could make a contribution in as opposed to focusing solely on my specific academic research specialty.
3. What tips would you give others applying for the GEM Fellowship?
When applying to fellowships I think it is important to speak to the audience reviewing the application. For GEM I was sure to make an explicit link between my research, the industry background I had, how the research experience I had could be beneficial in a variety of industries/applications and the role I felt GEM could play in my future career. It is very important to make the case the mutual benefit that would take place if you are selected – the sustainable impact the award will have on you/your career and what you will offer in return.
Richelle C. Thomas is a fifth year doctoral student in the Department of Chemical Engineering at the University of Texas at Austin. Currently, Richelle is establishing a translational research laboratory collaboration at the University of the West Indies, Barbados, WI through the Fulbright U.S. Student Program. Richelle received the Virginia & Ernest Cockrell, Jr. Endowed Fellowship in Engineering upon entry to the University of Texas and was awarded as 2010 GEM Fellow with DuPont as her sponsoring company. Richelle holds a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from the University of Notre Dame.
© Victoria Johnson 2012, all rights reserved.
Alex Lang, 2010 NSF Graduate Research Fellow
Alex Lang, a graduate student at Boston University, is paying it forward. On his personal website, AlexHunterLang.com, Alex has collected and posted many examples of winning essays written by him and other winners of the prestigious National Science Foundation (NSF) Graduate Research Fellowship, to help others prepare their applications. The NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program provides graduate students in science and engineering a three-year fellowship including an annual stipend of $30,000 and an additional $10K for your university. The application requires three letters of reference, a personal statement, and 2-page essays on previous research and proposed research. Alex gave us some insider tips.
1. Why did you decide to apply for the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship?
I did some physics research as an undergraduate and loved it. So, when I was applying to graduate school, I also applied for various fellowships so that I could start the research phase of graduate school as soon as possible. While I applied for several fellowships, my main goal was always the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program since it offers flexibility. An applicant needs to specify their research interests (which I was unsure of at the time), but after talking to a current graduate student, I learned that the NSF really funds a person, not a project. This came in handy for me, since my application was on Quantum Computing but now I do Biophysics research.
2. What do you think made your application stand out?
I had several different research experiences as an undergraduate. I was lucky that the research I was doing for my senior thesis was progressing well enough to have a paper submission at the time of applying. I also had a unique extracurricular activity. I had been Vice President of my hometown School Board, and one of the big issues while I was on the board was the changing of the math curriculum. That experience gave me plenty to write about in my essays.
3. What tips would you give others applying for the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship?
Don’t be intimidated! The application can seem daunting since it involves three essays judged by “Intellectual Merit and Broader Impacts.” Even today after applying and helping others apply, I can’t define what NSF means by those criteria. But, when I was applying, I found it really helpful to learn by example and I talked extensively with graduate students that had an NSF GRFP. I found it so helpful that it motivated me to put my essays on my website and try to collect as many other examples as I could find. So don’t be afraid to look and ask for help.
Alex Lang is a second year graduate student in Physics at Boston University and blogs on his experiences at alexhunterlang.com. He’s also getting married in May. Congrats Alex!
© Victoria Johnson 2012, all rights reserved.
In preparation for my upcoming seminar at MIT, I’ve gone back through my posts on science and engineering fellowships. Here’s a review of some of the best we’ve found.
Engineering:
- The Hertz Foundation Graduate Fellowship is a competitive and prestigious fellowship for exceptionally talented doctoral students in the applied physical, biological and engineering sciences.
- The Amelia Earhart Fellowship is a $10,000 award for women of any nationality pursuing a doctoral degree in the field of aerospace-related sciences and aerospace-related engineering.
- The Hydro Fellowship Program is awarded to mechanical and electrical engineering graduate students in their final year of study who are interested in conducting research related to the improvement of conventional hydropower.
- The KPCB Engineering Fellows Program is a paid summer fellowship for entrepreneurial engineering students at the venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Science:
- Yale University offers 20-25 annual Gruber Science Fellowships for students of any nationality pursuing a PhD in biomedical and biological sciences or in astronomy and astrophysics.
- The L’Oreal USA Fellowships for Women in Science is a competitive fellowship program that provides five awards of up to $60,000 to women postdoctoral researchers who are pursuing careers in the life and physical/material sciences, as well as mathematics, engineering and computer science.
Tech:
- Code for America is a highly competitive professional fellowship program that recuits talented web developers, designers, and entrepreneurs to work on innovative tech projects in city government agencies across the U.S., including Philadelphia, Seattle, Washington, DC and Boston.
- The Google Policy Fellowship is a paid summer fellowship for undergraduate, graduate, and law students to spend 10 weeks in Washington, DC, San Francisco, Toronto or Ottawa, Canada at public interest organizations working on public policy in broadband access, content regulation, copyright and trademark reform, consumer privacy, and open government.
- The DHS Emerging Leaders in Cybersecurity is a paid professional fellowship program for computer science graduates; fellows complete rotational assignments at the Department of Homeland Security in Washington, DC.
We hope to see you at our Spring 2012 University Tour in Boston! Read here for details.
Great news for graduate students considering pursuing a doctoral degree in life sciences, including plant sciences, microbiology, biochemistry, immunology, genetics and other specialties. The Monsanto Company recently announced a $930,000 grant to Washington University in St. Louis for the establishment of a Monsanto graduate fellowship program that will fund seven years worth of fellowship opportunities.
The Monsanto graduate fellowships will be offered to two qualifying graduate students pursuing doctoral degrees in the Division of Biological and Biomedical Sciences (DBBS), and will include an award of up to $31,000. Monsanto fellows can receive up to three years of support, beginning after their second year of study.
IAC, a leading Internet company, and New York University (NYU) are launching a new IAC Teaching and Research Fellowship Fund in partnership with NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts. IAC is providing $250,000 to support graduate fellowships for students from the School’s Interactive Telecommunications Program (ITP), a graduate education program in interactive media.
Four IAC Fellows, selected based on academic and entrepreneurial excellence, innovative research, and their potential to make an impact on the future of the interactive media space, have been awarded a one year fellowship to develop new technologies and research while providing faculty and student support within ITP’s classrooms. Their mentors include executives from Vimeo and IAC’s Hatch Labs, an innovation incubator devoted to improving wireless technology.
“Partnering with IAC in creating a Research Fellowship for recent graduates follows the example of many entrepreneurial ITP alumni, most notably Foursquare co-founder Dennis Crowley who spent a year after graduating incubating his ideas around locative media,” said ITP Founding Chair Red Burns. “Through this Fund, selected ITP students will now have a little extra time to deepen their skills and further explore their ideas in collaboration with the innovators at IAC.” Read more.
The American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP) Foundation is awarding a new EQUUS Foundation Research Fellowship to two researchers completing residency or graduate programs. Each will each receive a $5,000 tuition grant for their contributions to furthering equine veterinary knowledge through research.
“The equine veterinary community continues to struggle to find those dedicated to careers in equine research, especially veterinarians seeking advanced degrees,” said Wayne McIlwraith, AAEP Foundation Chairman. “We can’t thank the EQUUS Foundation enough for their dedication to education and responding to the important need of supporting those dedicating their careers to equine research.” Read the full press release.
The National Institute of Justice — the research, development and evaluation agency of the U.S. Department of Justice — funds a series of fellowships for people studying criminal justice. NIJ’s Graduate Research Fellowship program provides PhD awards for doctoral research. NIJ also offers the W.E.B Du Bois Fellowship, worth up to $100,000, to provide talented young researchers with an opportunity to elevate independently generated research and ideas to the level of national discussion.
Speaking of the newest award winners, John Laub, Director of NIJ, stated:
“These award recipients are outstanding scholars, students, and researchers who contribute to critical and innovative thinking on crime and justice policy and practice. I look forward to the progress and results related to having these talented individuals working to further NIJ’s mission in criminal justice research.” Read more.
Successful Graduate Research Fellowship applicants must demonstrate a strong knowledge of quantitative and qualitative data analysis studies, so if you are considering applying, be sure to reach out to experienced researchers for help preparing your fellowship application.
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